


Chipped

by Sixninetween



Category: H2O Delirious - Fandom, H2OVanoss - Fandom, VanossGaming, youtube - Fandom
Genre: After Life, Alternate Universe, Ghosts, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-14
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-06-08 07:22:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6844702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sixninetween/pseuds/Sixninetween
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jonathan began to pray, which was against the rules, that this was not his duty. That this was definitely not the man he was ordered to watch die. The card in his pocket vibrated at the thought, unfolding itself as the letters appeared one by one. </p>
<p>Or the typical Ghost AU where Jonathan is assigned a very special person to haunt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

He was _not_ a demon. Nope, nothing close to that.

He would finally decide on the word “ghost” after contemplating it for the longest time. Ghosts are the apparitions of a dead person, usually with unfinished business. In his case, it was a job. Working these long shifts, sometimes years at a time, gave him the option to keep his soul. As long as the job got done at some point, he was paid with possession.

Not that his soul was worth keeping. It was dry and in terrible condition in the little glass jar. The light was too dim, too dark. This would be his last job.

His real death would probably happen on Earth. Others have described the sensation in books as feeling numb for a few seconds, then incredibly cold. Supposedly, as the glass begins to crack, so does one’s skin. Everyone’s shattering is different, but all realize that it’s a painful experience. No one knows what happens afterwards. That hasn’t been recorded yet.

The task was to haunt and find an easy way to kill a specific mortal man. He had no information on him other than his address.

“Lives in this house. He’s terrified of people like us. It won’t take long to get rid of him,” Tyler smiled and handed him something.

It turned out to be a small card, laminated and all, with the word “chipped” stamped in giant red letters underneath his name.

“Jonathan, you’ve been one of the best ones we’ve ever had. It pains me that you’re hurting this much to have your spirit go out. Is there anything at all that could help you?”

Jonathan shook his head, folding the card up and stuffing it into the pocket of his jacket. “I can’t change what I feel, boss. There is nothing left for me. Don’t let my jar get dusty when I’m gone and make sure the pieces get cleaned up when it breaks.”

Tyler sat back into his chair and adjusted his glasses so that they didn’t slip off his nose. His smile faded into a frown, but his eyes stayed cheerful. “I’ll take care of that for you. Now get out of here before we both start crying.”

\--

The man lived on a farm. Rows upon rows of corn waved back and forth in the gentle breeze. A few chickens clucked from inside their enclosure. The house was bigger than he anticipated, but that was preferred. Everything was gorgeous and he ran his hands along the trees as he walked down the pathway to the farmhouse.

There was an orange tint in the sky as the sun rose. This was Jonathan’s day to learn about his victim; see what makes him tick, what gets him worked up. Tonight was when he would start doing the same routine. Maybe he’d knock over a few lamps, shut the power off, move things around. And, just to keep this guy on edge, he’d scare the chickens or horses in the darkness.

Now, Jonathan has done more hauntings than a lot of ghosts. He holds the record for getting a mortal killed the quickest. Everything that happened was to be expected, no surprises. Anything off would distract him and could mess up the game. It had happened once before to a partner of his named Luke. It ended up costing him his soul. Jonathan watched the jar break, feeling completely helpless as the glass pieces chipped off one by one.

And, here he was again, jaw dropped as the most gorgeous person he has ever seen walk out into the sunlight, sipping a cup of coffee as he overlooked the farm.

Jonathan began to pray, which was against the rules, that this was not his duty. That this was definitely not the man he was ordered to watch die. The card in his pocket vibrated at the thought, unfolding itself as the letters appeared one by one.

**E**

He bit his bottom lip, holding the card towards the sun as the letter grew darker.

**V**

It couldn’t be him. No way. He didn’t look that close to Vanoss, right? Shit, he’d only seen  _pictures._

**A**

Please, no. No. No. No. No.

**N**

Fuck. This was going to be awkward.


	2. Chapter 2

Even though his heart had stopped a long time ago, Jonathan swore he could feel the familiar beating in his chest. It pounded in his ears and brought just the slightest touch of warmness to his cheeks. Which was ridiculous because for two years his body has been permanently cold and pale. The only time he felt actually felt something was in the final steps of his job when he was granted permission to begin picking up objects. It took so much out of him to do that. His whole entire energy was strained to the point of snapping, the glass to the point of breaking, and he often wondered if that was the reason for his soul having such a short after-lifespan. Most ghosts are able to do their job for hundreds of years. He only got two.

The first year was full of frustration. He’d have these blackouts every now and then full of old memories. They were scrambled, impossible to understand until Tyler gave him a file with the name “Jonathan” on it. Inside were pictures of himself with headphones on, face illuminated by a computer screen. The memories became clear after that. He was famous for a gaming channel and had a lot of friends in the same industry who he made videos with almost every day. There were Tyler and Craig, Nogla and Lui, Brock and Brian, and Marcel. He missed them so much.

But, one stood out the most. He’d get these awful flashbacks of a man sobbing at night, screaming at the ceiling in anger and pain. He’d rip at his covers, throw things at the wall, get on his computer and type a long message for hours then delete it all without hitting send. Jonathan couldn’t recognize him, no matter how hard he tried. He’d look through his file for months before the final flashback came. That’s when he realized that this man’s name was Evan, or Vanoss, and the visions he was having were very real. Each night for a week after his death, Jonathan would sit on Evan’s bed, watching him cry. He’d try to say words, but they would get stuck in his throat and sit there until he couldn’t stand watching anymore.

For some reason, after he was brought into the world of haunting, the memories slipped far away to the back of his mind. Tyler helped him pull them back out.

As Evan walked down the steps of his porch, Jonathan sort of wished he didn’t know who he was. There was a familiar ache in his chest and empty as it was, it still echoed in his ribcage and made him want to double over in pain. But, he stood tall against the tree, watching every move his former friend made.

“C’mon, Daisy. I don’t have time for your laziness today,” Evan called back over his shoulder.

Suddenly, a dog came bursting outside, leaping through the green grass. Evan shook his head, a soft smile on his face, and walked inside the dimly lit barn. Jonathan followed the dog all the way to the doors, stopping before walking inside. He didn’t know if he was ready to see Evan close up yet. To have to look into those eyes and not be able to see the reflection of himself could kill him all over again. Not only that but when Evan was able to actually see him too, it’d hurt him all over again. Two years had passed, the wounds had finally healed, but now Jonathan would tear them open again.

And, yes, Jonathan was completely ignoring the fact that he had to fucking kill the guy. Because he knew already that he’d rather shatter his jar himself than hurt Evan again. Seeing the man he admired curled up on the left side of his bed with tear stained pillows was one of the worst things in the world. He dealt with loss worse than anyone Jonathan had ever seen.

So, he didn’t go in the barn. Instead, he floated inside the house and took in the, well, _Evaness_ of it all. He might look like some country boy on the outside, but boy did his California love show on the walls of his house. There were vinyl records hanging and pictures of him holding surfboards and photographs of awesome parties. The kitchen cupboards had a few shot glasses, the living room was modern as well. Jonathan ran his hand along the leather, imagining the sensation of the material beneath his fingertips. He then quickly bounced up the stairs, using some of his energy so that his converse clicked against the wood.

Evan’s bedroom was blue. His bedsheets were blue, too, along with the curtains. Jonathan tried hard to ignore the little voice in the back of his brain telling him that it was okay to cry, focusing instead on the closet. He flipped through some clothes, smiling at the familiar owl logo on a t-shirt, before shutting the door and shuffling over to the window. He pulled on the blinds and saw Evan walking a horse around the field, watching its lame leg with care. Within seconds, Evan looked back to the house and Jonathan felt his fear the second their eyes met. It happened too quickly for Jonathan to react in time to avoid him from being seen. He ducked down far too late.

When Jonathan slowly rose again, making sure his eyes barely peered over the windowsill, Evan was gone. The horse continued to graze against a bright blue sky. Jonathan sat back and rested his head against the wall. That was almost an absolute disaster. His job could’ve gone to shit just in those two seconds. His whole plan could fumble. But, then again, it’s not like he had a plan at this point anyway. His emotions would ruin everything if he made an attempt to actually finish this haunting. He stood up and began to float slightly above the ground. Sometime soon, he’d lose this ability, along with the power to go through walls.

Jonathan sighed and began drifting when the door slammed open. He almost let out a scream, quickly turning transparent. He held his breath when Evan walked in, face red and blotchy. He stared directly at Jonathan, their eyes meeting for the second time. Jonathan felt like he was melting and suddenly there was blood rushing in his ears again. The ghost of butterflies in his stomach made him want to smile, but he frowned when Evan’s eyes dropped to the window. He had been staring right through him. He was a dumbass for thinking any different.

“Fuck,” Evan said, “You were right there. I swear I saw you again. Oh god.” Evan wiped his eyes and took a few deep breaths. Jonathan could see the pain in his eyes when he took one last look at the window, then left the room.

The dog came in the room seconds later, tail wagging as Jonathan revealed himself again. He felt drained after that small use of energy. His jar must be really, really dim. With no energy to feed off of, his other powers would start going. He’d be completely useless and even if he wanted Evan to not see him, he wouldn’t be able to stop it.

Daisy began to growl as soon as Jonathan’s feet touched the floor. “Hey! Hey, stop it. No, bad dog. What are you? A pretty yellow lab? I always pictured Evan as a Chihuahua-loving guy,” he giggled and sat on the floor. Daisy padded over with caution, gently sniffing the palm of his hand before attempting to lick it. Her tongue went straight through his hand and she began licking the air in a frantic attempt to greet him. Jonathan chuckled because it looked pretty funny, but he still wished he could feel her soft fur.

“Sorry, girl,” Jonathan frowned as Daisy soon grew bored and left the room.

\--

Dinner was sort of a weird experience. Evan made himself some cheeseburgers and sat at the dining room table alone. He slowly chewed his food, staring blankly at the wall. Jonathan sat on the couch, switching his invisibility on when necessary, playing with the television until he was able to turn it on. Evan jumped when the static sound echoed through the house. He looked over at the remote and rolled his eyes before abandoning his plate. He dragged his feet all the way to the television, pulling the plug out of the wall with a harsh tug. When he turned back around, Daisy was standing in front of him with a whole cheeseburger hanging out her mouth.

“Shit! Get back here!” Evan tried grabbing her mouth, but the dog ran circles around him easily, dodging all his attempts to grab her. She let out a muffled bark and pieces of hamburger came flying out her mouth and onto the carpet. Jonathan held a hand over his mouth, trying to hold in his laughter when Evan tripped over the table. He landed on the carpet and Daisy came strutting over, placing the half-eaten, mutilated cheeseburger on his back.

Jonathan rolled on his side, letting out a fit of giggles.

And then the air grew thick again. Evan stood up, wiping off his tank top, before spinning around a few times as if he was searching for something. He turned his head in the direction of the television, then the kitchen, then back at the couch. He looked lost.

“Hello?” Evan called out. “I know you’re here. Someone’s here, anyway. I’m not going to hurt you, don’t be scared.”

“You’re not going to hurt _me_ ,” Jonathan said, “You’re the one who should be scared.”

Evan felt something. He couldn’t hear Jonathan’s reply, but he could sense his presence there. Jonathan must have laughed so hard that it broke the silence he cast over himself. His powers were fading, he didn’t have that much time left.

Evan sat on the floor cross-legged, making sure to avoid the mess of food. “You know, I lost someone a few years back. Maybe you know him. You could tell me if he is alright. I’ve been hoping for someone like you to show up ever since the funeral. I need to know if he’s okay, please, tell me if Jonathan is okay.”

Hearing his name said like that, in pure desperation, set his whole entire being on fire. He’d caused so much pain and he wanted to take it all back. He wanted things as they were before. He wanted to make funny videos that entertained thousands upon thousands of people. He wanted to talk to his friends, make them laugh again. All of these people hurt because of him.

He was never given the privilege to say goodbye, to tell Evan that he’d be alright. Shit, he didn’t even know _how_ he died.

Jonathan went to speak, to take back the silence, but he couldn’t. Not yet.


	3. Chapter 3

It felt particularly strange to watch Evan while he slept. Not creepy, but just weird. He had forgotten what sleep actually looked like. For some time now, he thought people slept with their eyes  _ open _ . But no, they didn’t, and he was relishing in the way Evan’s eyes were closed and the moonlight poured in from the window to perfectly illuminate his face. Pretty was the only word to describe him. Maybe innocent too. Gorgeous? Beautiful? Too many words to think of. He had about eight hours to waste though so counting words that described Evan’s face seemed like a good way to do it. 

Jonathan kicked his legs out, sending the chair rocking back and forth. Daisy’s ears twitched from her place on the bed. She snuggled further into Evan’s back. And that sent Jonathan’s mind to a bad place because he wanted to touch Evan so fucking bad. Technically, he could, though. It’d take a lot of energy but it was doable.

So, he did it. Closed his eyes, opened his palms, a flash of blue light and he was suddenly lying next to Evan. Everything was too warm for a couple seconds, the air too thick, and he almost rolled off the bed. He could hear the heavy sound of Evan’s breath, the thunder rolling in from almost a mile away. He could smell the lemon detergent that Evan used to wash the sheets a week ago and the stale scent of cologne hovering in the room. Something else was new - a tail in between his legs.

And that’s how possession works.

It’s simple really. A change of brain waves and a tilt of consciousness and that’s all there is. Dogs are some of the easier mammals to possess. Humans are the most difficult. It’s almost like levels in a game. You start with a mouse whose brain is smaller than a nickel and move up from there. He has not yet possessed another human. That’s too intrusive. You get all their memories. Their most personal moments; you see their mother and father and sister, everything they have ever loved. Dogs, on the other hand, are simple minded. The only thing he could remember was where to find the trashcan and where to lick.

He could feel Evan breathing, his back just brushing against his hand (paw) when he inhaled. It felt so nice. He nuzzled into Evan’s back as hard as he could. If his arms were a little longer, he could wrap them around his waist and run his hands through his dark hair and if he had lips he could kiss him. But that’d be borderline bestiality because he was Daisy right now, not him. He wished he knew what he looked like so he could picture himself there, but he had forgotten a long time ago. He could always look down and see his hands and feet in human form. His stomach had a pretty gnarly scar on it. It was wide and raised, still pink too. He tried to not lift up his shirt that much. But, that was all he could see. His face could have yellow eyes and crooked teeth and he wouldn’t know. The only thing he could feel was his nose, which was upturned at the tip. He was probably really ugly because he always felt ugly on the inside. It didn’t even matter that much, he was a ghost anyway. His body was his body whether he liked it or not.

But don’t wonder about his dick. He is perfectly fine down there, thank you.

Jonathan could feel his powers fading as the sun started to rise. He was fixated on Evan’s eyelashes, which were pretty long for a guy when his own eyes started to roll into the back of his head. Darkness, then Evan, then darkness again. If he stayed any longer, Daisy would die. 

He put out his paws, a flash of blue light.

Then, he was sitting in the rocking chair again, cold and lifeless.

Jonathan rubbed his eyes and felt absolutely exhausted. His head was pounding. The sunlight made it ten times worse. For a moment, he felt like he was going to be sick. But then he remembered he couldn’t get sick and the feeling subsided into a dull ache near his scar.

“Wake up,” he said into the room.

Nothing happened. The blue all around him was the same.

“Wake up,” he repeated.

Evan sat straight up in his bed, hair sticking to his forehead and t-shirt drenched in cold sweat. He looked around frantically. He was white knuckling his covers.

Jonathan felt so bad. He did that. Woke him up by speaking aloud. The only thing he could do was sit there with just enough energy to keep him invisible and pray that Evan did not hear him move.

Evan looked down at his covers, releasing them and frowning. Jonathan could sense a looming panic in the air.

“If you’re not going to talk to me, then I’ll talk to you. I’m going to tell you everything about everyone until you hear something that makes you crack,” Evan said to his bed sheets.

_ I’m already cracked, _ Jonathan thought. He remained silent, thinking of the little jar on the shelf with a bright blue light just glowing. He thought of Tyler picking up a glass shard on the ground and refusing to believe it came from his soul.

“I had a friend named Jonathan. The world called him Delirious. He died two years ago.” Tears were streaming down Evan’s pale face. He didn’t wipe them and kept focusing on the blue underneath his hands. “He loved the color blue. I loved red. I avoided anything blue for a year and a half before I took a good look at the sky and realized forgetting him wasn’t going to help. So I ordered all of this shit,” Evan gestured to the wall, “And pretended like I was going to see him in it.”

Jonathan wanted to cry, too, because before his file came in and his shoes were stained red from a goopy substance that he would later find out was his own blood, he found comfort in it. Found comfort in them while sitting in a cushioned chair under bright, artificial lights while people with masks on and lab coats ran around the hallway. He was waiting outside of a room when a man came out with the same goopy stuff on his coat and put his head in his hands, then said something about being “pronounced.” Jonathan couldn’t remember the numbers that came after it. He still doesn’t understand what the man in white said.

“. . .But I didn’t. I never saw him again. I tried to follow all that poetic shit for a while, you know? The ones that tell you that missing someone is part of the healing process and screaming to the moon or whatever is completely normal. Truth is, I did scream a lot. Especially the night my phone rang at three in the morning and it was the police telling me that my best friend was dead. If there was any way to describe the feeling I’d tell you. But there isn’t. Because for a few minutes you feel empty, then you get sick and throw up everything in your stomach, and then you’re even more empty.” Evan looked over to the window, peering out at the sunrise just peeking up behind the barn. He let the tears drip off his nose and run down his cheeks that were turning red as his body woke up. He looked at the wall and began desperately pleading. “Please, tell me if Jo’s alright. Tell me he’s happy in heaven and has a million teddy bears to keep him warm and has a huge gaming setup to make videos for all the angels. Tell me before you leave my chair that you’re sitting in.”

So, it was moving. Jonathan needed sleep. Needed time to think about all of this. He couldn’t remember everything about their relationship. If he tried, his energy would run out and he’d be left with no choice but to let it regenerate. It took days, sometimes weeks, for that to happen and by then A) Evan would have seen him and B) his jar would be in the trash compactor. He could possess Evan’s body and search through his memories but, again, too personal.

Evan looked over at the rocking chair and sighed, “Fine. Hide yourself. Do whatever you want. I’m just going to keep talking to you, though, and annoy the hell and or heaven out of you until you just have to talk back.” He smiled a bit for the first time since last night and whispered, “I can be  _ very _ persuasive.”

And then Jonathan was downstairs hovering behind Evan watching him scramble some eggs.

“You swish it around like this! Do not forget the salt because one time I was trying to be all fit and didn’t put any in and it tasted like straight up crap.” He then dumped in enough salt to kill a small bird and continued talking, “You can add cheese if you want some.”

Then, Evan stopped, looked at the stove and scrunched up his face, “Wait, do ghosts even  _ eat _ ? It’d go right through you, right? Ah, dude, that blows! Oh, you might not even be a dude. You could be a girl. Am I assuming your gender? I’m triggering myself right now this is so bad I’m sorry. Whatever you are, I think you’re pretty cool. I mean, you haven’t tried to kill me or take over my body yet. You just stalk me.”

Jonathan wanted to yell back “Do not!” but he stopped himself. He was enjoying this quite a bit. It was better than the usual awkward, creepy silence. 

Evan threw a grin over his shoulder and poured the eggs into a pan. After he was done cooking, he filled two bowls to the brim and set them down on the table across from each other. “I suppose you can at least pretend to eat. I haven’t had breakfast with anyone for over two years.”

That tugged on Jonathan’s heartstrings a bit. There was really nothing stopping him at this point, so he pulled the chair slowly out from under the table and sat down.

Evan’s eyes were wide, a wicked smile across his face, “You did it! Wow, I was starting to think I might be going crazy but, oh my god, you’re really here!” He pushed the bowl closer toward Jonathan’s side and stirred the eggs with a fork.

Hot steam rose up and Jonathan inhaled deeply, trying his best to smell them. Nothing could break through with the silence still cast over him, though. He decided to humor Evan because for some reason he couldn’t understand, he seemed ecstatic with the thought of a ghost sitting across from him. Jonathan grabbed the fork and spun it around the bowl, sending eggs flying onto the table.

Evan watched with his mouth full. “No, stupid, you’re supposed to eat them. Or pretend at least.”

Jonathan rolled his eyes and picked up a forkful of the gooey eggs. He whirled the string of cheese hanging off around for a few seconds, amused with the little whooshing noise it made. He brought the fork to his mouth and frowned. If only he could actually take a bite and taste it, feel full afterward. God, he’d even like it if the fork poked him in the top of the mouth and he could actually  _ feel _ it. The things you take for granted.

They were out at the barn a few hours later. Jonathan was swinging his legs on the fence while watching Evan hammer boards across the barn window. His muscles did look rather dazzling being all sweaty and tense. But, Jonathan wasn’t really going to admit that to himself quite yet.

Evan threw the hammer down into the hay, then dropped next to it. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and sighed. “So, hurricanes happen often here. You know what a hurricane is? Lots of wind, lots of rain, and lots of damage to my farm. Spooks the horses and cows. Poor Daisy here needs special medicine so she doesn’t freak out with all the thunder. I used to love storms.”

_ I did too. _ Jonathan almost fell off of the fence because  _ holy shit, he fucking loved storms. _ And for a second he could feel the coolness on his skin from raindrops and the wind through his hair and the way the sky turned grey but would bend into blue at the corners. A silent memory: a breezeway, windows open, a hand heavy in his.

Then, it was gone. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the incredibly long wait. I don't know if I'm continuing We're All Heroes yet, I'm still really busy. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Any constructive criticism is always welcome. Thank you for reading :)

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure if I should continue this or not, but I've been trying to play around with some different ideas than just superheroes. Hope you enjoyed!!


End file.
